Catherine Tyldesley has said that an upcoming Coronation Street plotline tackling child slavery will break new ground for soap operas.
"It's an interesting storyline to be involved in and not something that's really been done in a soap before," says the actress, whose character Eva Price will find Polish runaway Marta hiding at the factory.
Explaining how Marta has come to escape, Tyldesley explains that she had been kept as an unpaid worker by the O'Driscolls, who viewers know to be wealthy clients of the Underworld team:
"Eva and Aidan have been at a dinner party at the O’Driscolls and, unbeknownst to them, Marta has jumped into the back of their van as they are leaving, which is how she ends up at the factory."
As the story progresses, Eva befriends Marta, but will remain in the dark that it's the O'Driscolls who were the ones to force her into slavery.
"Eva has no idea that it is the O’Driscolls who are keeping Marta as an unpaid slave," continues Tyldesley. "She just tells Eva that she is being kept against her will by a wealthy couple. Eva is very sympathetic and wants to help."
Next week's episodes of Corrie will see Eva let a shocked Aidan in on her discovery, but Tyldesley emphasises that it would be a while before the Connors realise the connections Marta has with the O'Driscolls and the impact this could have on their business dealings.
"The interesting part of the story from here is that at, some point, it's going to come out that it's the O’Driscolls who are keeping Marta a slave, so that will really out the Connors in a difficult position with regards to continuing to do business with them. But there is quite a way to go before that all comes out in the open.
"What you'll see in the coming weeks, though, is that Eva's actions will have consequences for the factory and potentially for her relationship with Aidan. She'll make some decisions that could blow up in her face."
Watch a 60-second rundown of next week's episodes of Coronation Street below.
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